Coming into the NBA playoffs, many felt like the Los Angeles Lakers would have the toughest road of any team. The Portland Trail Blazers promised to be a worthy first-round foe, although the Lakers dispatched them in five games. Beyond that, fans weren't sold they would breeze by the Rockets, who showed flashes of brilliance while in the bubble. After losing Game 1, the Lakers quickly put an end to all of that noise as they won four straight games against the Rockets, including Game 5, last night.
The Game 5 matchup was never particularly close as the Lakers ran over the Rockets from start to finish. While down almost 30 points, Russell Westbrook began talking trash to none other than LeBron James who seemed pretty amused by it all. In this clip posted to Twitter, you could see LeBron laughing in Russ' face after he suggests the Lakers should be double-teaming him.
Overall, this was a worst-case scenario game for the Rockets who will now have to exit the bubble earlier than they would have hoped. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers are heading to the Western Conference Final for the first time in 10 years which is exciting for fans who have had to deal with some pretty bad teams over the last few years.
Now, the Lakers will wait for the Nuggets and Clippers series to end before knowing their next opponent.